According to the Independent, gold could be used as a temporary replacement for the dollar while the new currency basket was implemented.

"Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars," it claimed.

"Chinese financial sources believe President Barack Obama is too busy fixing the US economy to concentrate on the extraordinary implications of the transition from the dollar in nine years' time. The current deadline for the currency transition is 2018," added.

The dollar fell by around 0.4% against a basket of other currencies following the report. This pushed gold to a new all-time high of $1,035 per ounce.

The report was swiftly denied by several of the world's biggest oil producers. Muhammad al-Jasser, head of the Saudi Arabian central bank, claimed it was "absolutely incorrect", while Russian finance minister Dmitry Pankin and a Kuwaiti oil minister both denied discussing a move away from the dollar.

A source within the United Arab Emirates central bank also told Reuters that it would be sticking with the greenback.

A flawed system?

But analysts believe that the dollar's long-term future as the currency for oil trading is indeed in doubt.

"China, Russia and many Middle East countries already have large dollar reserves. They want to stop them getting higher, and may even want to start diversifying them into other currencies," pointed out David Hart, oil and gas analyst at investment bank Hanson Westhouse.

For years, economists have speculated about how long oil would continue to be traded in dollars. Critics argue that the current system is flawed; oil importers are forced to buy dollars to pay for their fuel, while exporters are left with billions of dollars which they often hold in reserve or reinvest in the US economy. The result, they say, is that the dollar's position as the global reserve currency is reinforced. Thus, the US economy is supported as any devaluation would cause damage across the world. Most of China's $2tn (£1.24tn) of foreign currency reserves are in dollars, for example.

Hart said that it is inevitable that the dollar's dominance over the oil market will be broken eventually, possibly sooner than 2018. He believes the transition would happen slowly, rather than a sudden switch.

"Let's face it, bilateral trade between China and these other countries is growing, so you can see why there is interest in matching up the currencies," said Hart. "If China and Russia are trading oil, why would they want to do that solely in dollars?"

Hart also pointed out that America would probably then be forced to raise interest rates to make its US Treasury bonds more appealing to investors.

David Buik, veteran City commentator, argued that moving oil trading away from the dollar would be "radical by any standards".

But, he said: "Let's be candid, it's not going to happen. Saudi Arabia is very dependent on the US for trade oil, defence and there is no way Saudi will stab the US in the back by pulling support away."